Understanding ODRINDIA process and doubts clarification, 23 March (4-5 PM)

[sapana@ebay.com]

Hi,

We recently announced the Launch of Third Party tool ODR INDIA, to assist our users in the Online Dispute Resolution process.

http://www2.ebay.com/aw/in/200603.shtml#2006-03-08142201

Our members had posted some questions and clarifications regarding the same. To help you understand ODR INDIA process and to clarify your concerns, ODR team members will be conducting this Online workshop.Post your question in advanace on this thread, or join us in this workshop on 23rd March.

Host: ODR INDIA
Date:Thursday, 23rd March 2006
Time: 4.00 PM to 5.00 PM (IST)

Hope to see you there!

Regards,
Sapana

P.S: From our Legal Department - The statements and opinions made in this discussion board are those of the workshop host only and do not reflect eBay policy or eBay's opinion with respect to such statements.

[odrindia123]

How confidential is the process?

Only the parties involved, Neutrals and ODR INDIA staff have access to case details.


What happens if the other party refuses to respond/participate?

ODR INDIA will send case notification reminder emails at regular intervals for a period of 14 days encouraging the other party to respond and participate in the process.

After the 14 days the case is closed. However, if the other party chooses to respond and agrees to participate the case will be reopened.

ODR INDIA cannot guarantee participation as ODR is a voluntary process where it is important that both parties participate willingly to reap benefits of the process and comply with settlements reached.

[odrindia123]

What is the position of ODR in India?

Online Dispute Resolution is like any other alternative dispute resolution mechanism. The only difference is that in ODR the dispute resolution is conducted via online means.
India encourages all services and sectors to use the online environment.

Here are some articles for your information on ODR in India:

http://www.odr.info/unece2003/pdf/popat.pdf - Online Dispute Resolution in India by Prathmesh Popat
http://praveendalal.blogspot.com/2005/11/online-dispute-resolution-in-india.html - Online Dispute Resolution in India by Praveen Dalal
http://praveendalal.blogspot.com/2005/12/culture-of-adr-in-india.html - The Culture of ADR in India by Praveen Dalal
http://praveendalal.blogspot.com/2006/02/harmonisation-through-odrm-treaty.html - Harmonisation through ODRM Treaty by Geeta Narula

Related legislations:

Arbitration and Conciliation Act 1996 available at http://legalservices.maharashtra.gov.in/pdf/arbitration%20and%20conciliation%20act%201996.pdf


Information Technology Act 2000 available at http://www.legalserviceindia.com/cyber/itact.html

[odrindia123]

Are the settlements reached via ODR enforceable in India?

When you resolve your dispute via Assisted Negotiation or Automated Negotiation, the parties may incorporate what has been agreed into an agreement. This agreement will have the same force as any contract.

For Mediation, upon resolution of dispute, the Mediator will assist the parties draft the settlement which will have the same force as any contract.

For Arbitration, the Arbitrator will draw up the award which can be enforced in any court in India.



What happens if one party fails to comply with the settlement?

The prevailing party can file a suit in court for breach of agreement.


Why are we having a promotional 3 months period and what happens after that?

Like for every product we are launching and testing the waters.

During this 3 months period:
Assisted Negotiation is free
First 25 cases for Mediation is free, thereafter Rs 750 per case.
50% discount for Arbitration cases

If there is a demand for this service, we are willing to consider offering Assisted Negotiation free at all times and study how we can offer better rates for Mediation and Arbitration.

We care for all users, have their best interests at heart, listen to suggestions and strive to provide affordable and quality online dispute resolution services.

[odrindia321]

Hi skyshopindia,



Thanks for the questions:



1. What amount is exactly mean by Hi-Value for a dispute suited for Arbitration?



High Value means the amount in dispute is of a big sum. High value might also mean that the case is complicated that you need an Arbitrator to decide the dispute for you.



Arbitration is a very formal process, next to litigation. The fees for Arbitration is also high because of the formalities involved and the time required for such a process.



Ideally before parties decide on Arbitration, they should first try out Mediation. Only if they are unable to resolve their dispute via Mediation should they opt for Arbitration and ask the Arbitrator to decide on the dispute.



2. Is there is any criteria for a) Assisted Negotiation, b)Automated Negotiation c) Mediation d) Arbitation



Most civil and commercial disputes can make avail of these methods of dispute resolution.



However certain case are not suitable for Alternative Dispute Resolution:



Criminal matters

Constitutional matters

Cases trying to establish precedents

Winding up of companies



For Arbitration the requirement under Section 7(1) the Indian Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 states that the dispute must be in respect of a defined legal relationship whether contractual or not. Matters of moral or spiritual relations will not be fit for Arbitration.





3. What is the service charge for different services provided by ODR?



For eBay users we are currently having a promotional fee. Rates can be viewed at https://www.odrindia.com/special_fees.php



4. If any seller go for ODR Process, how buyer will came to know that?



The first step the seller has to take is to get the email id of the buyer. On how to get the email id of the buyer ( or 2nd Party) please see https://www.odrindia.com/steps.php



Once you have obtained the email id of the 2nd party (in this instance the buyer) you should proceed to “File a case” on www.odrindia.com .



You will be presented with a 1st party form. This form also contains a field asking you to fill in the email id of the 2nd party (in this instance the buyer).



Once this form is submitted, the 2nd party (in this instance the buyer) will be notified via email that a request to resolve a case via ODR INDIA has been filed by the 1st party (in this instance the seller)



5. Is there any mark will be added with each listing of the seller?



To rephrase the question according to my understanding, will a seller subscribing to ODR get a trust seal on his listings?



The answer is no, as of now we do not have any plans to offer marks or logo's on listing. ODR India is completely a 3rd Party and has no platform intergation with eBay



ODR India doesn't offer any verfication service and doesn't offer any Trust Seals/Logos



Trust this answers your questions. Can I help you with any other clarifications?

Regards

Chittu

[odrindia321]

Dear eBay users

Good evening to you all.

Thanks, Sapana for the introduction.

ODR INDIA is glad to participate in the online workshop today.

As the title of the workshop is “Understanding ODR INDIA and clarifying doubts”, this is exactly what we seek to achieve by this evening.

We hope by the end of this workshop eBay users will get a clearer understanding of ODR INDIA with no further doubts lingering.

A list of ODR INDIA FAQs have been posted for your information. We hope it offers some insight.

Please start with all your thoughts and doubts.

We will try our best to respond to all postings within this hour. If we are unable to do so, you can be assured that you will receive a response latest by tomorrow.

Feedback and Suggestions are very important to ODR INDIA to help us to improve and provide you with qualitative online dispute resolution services.


Best Regards
Chittu
ODR INDIA

[sapana@ebay.com]

Hi,

We think this is an important topic for our community. If you have any questions regarding the topic, feel free to post it here.

Chittu will be periodically monitoring the thread. She will try and find answers to your questions as soon as possible.

Thanks,
Sapana

[indconcepts]

Dear Sapana,

Whats happening to ebay's professionalism ?
So important an work shop and no body is aware.
I have just seen that you posted a thread on 20th march and today on 23rd march the workshop is over.

In contrast, the Open House Chat with Mr. Sharat Digumarti was publicised well 15-20 days in advance.

Just see the response ..... only one member cared to post ....skyshopindia .

Time marked on the replies from ORD shows nobody participated during the 4-5 p.m online workshop.

Anyway.... Hello Chittu.


I feel buying & Selling in India is at a very nascent stage but with time, Community would know the importance of ORD.

I have few, very simple questions for you, in context with ebay.

I feel, in the begining most of the members would be looking forward to getting help from ODR India regarding feedback withdrawal. Am I right?

Secondly, when Seller has malacious intentions then ebay is there to protect the Buyer for Rs. 10,000.
But when Buyer has malacious intentions then how would ODR India be able to help the Seller ?
ebay would pay the claim to the Buyer but on the other hand pull the Seller for Non performance.
Can ODR India guarantee justice to the Seller ?

And the last question....what do you think would be the percentage break up, as far as the useage of the four negociations are concerned in context with ebay disputes.

regards

Umang Midha .





http://stores.ebay.in/IndConcepts


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[sapana@ebay.com]

Hi indconcepts,

Apologies for the inconvenience caused to you!

Based on Community need for better clarification, we arranged this Workshop with the ODR team and conducted it at short notice.

I totally agree that the notice was not sufficient, which is why we have kept the thread open for more days, for you to post your questions.

Good to know that you are making the most of this opportunity and clarifying your doubts with the ODR team.

Regards,
Sapana

[odrindia321]

Hi indconcepts

Thanks for the questions

I totally agree with you and I am sure with time awareness regarding ODR and its benefits will spread.

1. I feel, in the begining most of the members would be looking forward to getting help from ODR India regarding feedback withdrawal. Am I right?

Its too early to comment. We need to wait and see.

2. Secondly, when Seller has malacious intentions then ebay is there to protect the Buyer for Rs. 10,000.
But when Buyer has malacious intentions then how would ODR India be able to help the Seller ?
ebay would pay the claim to the Buyer but on the other hand pull the Seller for Non performance.
Can ODR India guarantee justice to the Seller ?

Once you have tried dispute console to resolve the dispute and having failed to reach agreement, you may approach ODR INDIA. But ODR INDIA cannot guarantee you that the other party will respond or agree to participate in the process. ODR INDIA is a voluntary process and hence parties must want to participate.
ODR INDIA does not guarantee anything. We provide you the platform with services to help parties resolve their dispute without taking the dispute to court and in an online environment.

ODR INDIA can also be used for transactions outside of ebay. However ebay offers buyer protection for transactions happening online. The essence is that any good dispute resolution provider should always take a neutral stance and the principle is to offer an amicable solution which is mutually acceptable to both parties.

3. what do you think would be the percentage break up, as far as the useage of the four negociations are concerned in context with ebay disputes.

If I understand right, I think you are referring to the four services: Assisted Negotiation, Automated Negotiation, Mediation and Arbitration.

Again its too early to comment. But I would think that parties may try Assisted Negotiation for low value transactions. Mediation for disputes which is important to the buyer or seller and for disputes where the amount involved is on the higher end. Arbitration for very high value transaction disputes.
Automated Negotiation might not be used for eBay transaction disputes.

Again these are solely my views and I might be wrong.


Regards
Chittu

[indconcepts]

Dear Chittu,

Thanks for making the picture more clear.

In short the two most popular negotiations on ebay would be .....

Assisted Negotiation
&
Mediation

Automated Negotiation is opted where an amount of money is disputed. I don't think there would be such a case with ebay disputes involving a sum of money.

Arbitration may have a small place in years to come.

Chittu , it would be of great help if you could enlighten us with the comparison of ODR India viz-a-viz SQUARE TRADE.

Many Sellers aren't happy with the kind of fees that is associated with your dispute resolution.

What do you have to say?


One more question.....

I haven't followed the fee payment system of ODR India.

It has been stated that the fees would be paid by ...
either the 1st party
or by 2nd party
or shared by the two.

Now, why would the 2nd party agree to pay the fees individually when the case has been started by the 1st party ?

Similarly, why would the 2nd party share the fees when the case has been started by the 1st party ?

I feel out of the allotted 14 days ebayers might not waste half the time negotiating the fees amoungst them.

Could you please through some light on how would they arrive at the payment of the fees ?

regards

Umang Midha .





http://stores.ebay.in/IndConcepts


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